Amirkabir’s Perceptions and His Independence-Oriented Foreign Policy

In the history of Iran’s foreign relations, the Qajar era is often characterized as the period of dependence on and concessions to foreign powers. Yet even in this era, there have been short periods of struggles for gaining more independence and enforcing national sovereignty among which the short chancellorship of Mirza Taqi Khan Amirkabir is the most salient one as he attempted to pave the way for more independence of the country in various aspects. This article seeks to explain this foreign policy shift. It suggests that his belief system could have played a role. The main question addressed is about the way in which Amirkabir’s beliefs led to an independence-seeking foreign policy. The hypothesis examined, based on operational code analysis, is that this foreign policy is rooted in his philosophical and instrumental beliefs. Applying qualitative content analysis to Amirkabir’s shows how a specific combination of a set of beliefs can explain Iran’s foreign policy in this period.